Cemetary Shot

Next years photo competition at the state fair is a black and white only event. I am still working on my photographic eye for b/w. Can you all take a look at this image and give me a critique? Good, bad or otherwise, I want to know what I can do better and what I did right on this one.

IMAGE LINK: http://www.flickr.com/​photos/sirquack/958040​5958/

I'm not liking the slant or having it dead center like that. Do you have others? I haven't shot a cemetery in a while, but I think I'd emphasize and focus on one headstone and show it amongst a whole row that are fading from view and out of focus. Give it some kind of subtle/calm order. This just pops out at the viewer.

Not a good composure, but for what it's worth, I went b/w in photoshop and worked red and yellow to bring out a little more tone.

http://trailguy.smugmu​g.com …%20of%201%29%20​copy-L.jpg

Angled perspetives can give uninteresting images some interest but they usually just make it worse IMO. I like the B&W conversion though.

Thanks for the feedback guys. I will rework it. I took it slanted, but can definitely rework to straighten it out. Luckily the cemetery it only 5 minutes from my house, so I can go there and shoot anytime.

I like slanted shots in some cases but this one does not work for me. I think the angles on the monument work against the angled point of reference.

I like the B&W conversion and high contrast.

The dark out of focus trees against a blown-out sky detract from the mood of the cemetery. I think darker backgrounds work better for a cemetery scene.

I like that one

Went to your flickr site and saw the other shot of this monument (at least I think it's the same one); I really like it a lot. I like the way that two sides of the monument are exposed but with very different lighting. And there's something about the gravel pathway behind it that intrigues me: most people walk by without stopping but you've forced us to stop and consider this particular place/person/memorial.

It's a little tilted to the left and the monument in the background (just left of the in-focus monument) is a bit distracting, but I think this image has great potential.

A question: are you using your 30mm Sigma for these shots?

I like the BW conversion also... PS out the service lines if you decide to use this shot.

@David, yes it was my Siggy 30 that I was using for this quick shoot. This particular shoot was just a quick stop at the cemetery. I did not plan necessarily to take a lot of shots so I did not. I am getting so many good ideas from the folks here on what I need to change so I can plan a trip when the skies are more to my advantage. I will also reframe the shot for the one you are talking about in particular. This particular cemetery has many that were buried back into the late 1800's. So there are plenty of unique headstones to photograph. The one in the photo you like is actually one of the 1800's headstones. That is why I focused on it.
@Mojo, thanks as well. I will be doing a lot more work on the ones I finally end up with. I will try to keep the "modern" stuff out of the final images I end up taking.
Thanks to all and keep the critiques coming. I am so grateful for this forum and it's members for their helpfulness and knowledge.